Product Description

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An abridgment of the famous 3-volume set. "An indispensable resource for anyone interested in studying the origin, development, and continuing impact of apocalyptic thought and writings in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Readable scholarly essays by eminent specialists,"---America. 720 pages, hardcover.

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Publisher's Description

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"Apocalypticism has been the source of hope and courage for the oppressed, but has also given rise, on many occasions, to fanaticism and intolerance. The essays in this volume seek neither to apologize for the extravagance of apocalyptic thinkers nor to excuse the perverse actions of some of their followers. Rather, they strive to understand a powerful, perhaps even indispensable, element in the history of Western religions that has been the source of both good and evil, and still is yet today."The Editors

The Continuum History of Apocalypticism is a 1-volume, select edition of the 3-vol. Encyclopedia of Apocalypticism first published in 1998. The main historical surveys that provided the spine of the Encyclopedia have been retained, while essays of a thematic nature, and a few whose subject matter is not central to the historical development, have been omitted. The work begins with 8 articles on "The Origins of Apocalypticism in the Ancient World," extending from ancient Near Eastern myth through the Old Testament to the Dead Sea Scrolls, Jesus, Paul, and the Book of Revelation. Next are 7 articles on "Apocalyptic Traditions from Late Antiquity to ca. 1800 C.E.," including early Christian theology, radical movements in the Middle Ages, and both Jewish and Islamic apocalypticism in the classic period. The final section, "Apocalypticism in the Modern Age," includes 10 articles on apocalypticism in the Americas, in Western and Eastern Europe, and, finally, in modern Judaism and modern Islam.

Library Journal

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Continuum here presents a distillation of its three-volume Encyclopedia of
Apocalypticism. Comprising 49 scholarly historical and thematic essays, this
encyclopedia offered a general academic course of instruction covering the
essentials of eschatology, messianism, otherworldly journeys, and
millennialist utopianism. This new volume contains 25 select historical essays
from the original set to explain the historical development of Apocalypticism,
the belief that God has revealed the imminent end of the ongoing struggle
between good and evil in history. Following the themes of the previous set,
this volume is divided chronologically into three parts: "Origins of
Apocalypticism in the Ancient World," "Apocalyptic Traditions from Late
Antiquity to 1800 C.E.," and "Apocalyptism in the Modern Age." The essays do
not conjure the Hollywood horror ideal of end times (and you won't lie in bed
reading this work cover to cover) but instead provide historical and social
background for an aspect of religious belief that deals with hope and courage
to the oppressed and an understanding of good and evil. A unique and
affordable companion revealing the historical and social dynamics of
apocalyptic thought, this is recommended for academic theological collections
not owning the previous three-volume set.-L. Kriz, West Des Moines P.L., IA
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